PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Gavels & Gowns - Enforcement on Campus: The Impact of New Immigration Priorities on Academia
Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast Episode 273: Quick Tips -- Mastering the Bar Exam as an ESL or Foreign-Trained Student
Harvard/MIT Student Visa Case
Nota Bene Episode 91: China Q3 Check In - Trade Wars, GDP Growth, Pandemic Comparatives, and Hong Kong with Michael Zhang
Update from Washington: Employer's Preview of Immigration Restrictions from the Administration
Nota Bene Episode 77: Labor, Employment, and Immigration in a Pandemic World with Kelly Hensley, Denise Giraudo, and Greg Berk
Over the past several months, international students in F-1 status have experienced heightened scrutiny. Increasing numbers of reports indicate that students are facing visa revocations and the termination of their records in...more
One major issue underlying the pending House v. NCAA settlement is its impact on international students on F-1 student visas (academic student). As analyzed in a previous episode of Highway to NIL, if approved, the House...more
USCIS provided updated guidance in the USCIS Policy Manual with regard to the F-1 and M visa classifications utilized by international students for vocational, graduate and post-graduate study at U.S. academic institutions....more
The F-1 nonimmigrant visa status allows noncitizens to study in the United States at U.S. colleges and universities. F-1 students may be eligible for off-campus employment under the following programs: Curricular Practical...more
On July 23, 2024, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) added the category of Environmental/Natural Resource Economics (03.0204) as a qualifying field of study to the DHS STEM Designated Degree Program List. DHS did...more
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently updated guidance in its policy manual regarding international students within F and M student classifications. This new guidance consolidates and provides greater...more
It is once again time for employers to evaluate their H-1B needs as the annual filing season approaches. Despite continued strong demand for skilled workers, U.S. law places a yearly limit or “cap” on most new H-1B visas at...more
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has changed its policy manual to make it easier to find and understand all the regulations regarding nonimmigrant students in F and M status. The new guidance consolidates...more
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is issuing policy guidance regarding F and M students, including USCIS’s role in adjudicating applications for employment authorization, change of status, extension of stay,...more
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will now offer premium processing for individuals seeking to change their status to an F-1 or M-1 vocational student, or J-1 Exchange visitor, as well as their dependents....more
USCIS has expanded premium processing for F-1 students to pending Employment Authorization Documents (EAD) applications based on Optional Practice Training (OPT) and STEM OPT. On April 3, 2023, the same will be extended to...more
Over the past week, the State Department and USCIS have issued several significant updates, including the return of U.S. stateside visa processing and the expansion of premium processing for F-1 students....more
USCIS has expanded premium processing for certain F-1 students seeking Optional Practical Training (OPT) and STEM OPT extensions. Specifically, for a fee of $1,500, eligible applicants can request that USCIS adjudicate their...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: In its continued efforts to increase efficiency and reduce burdens to the overall immigration system, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced the expansion of premium processing for...more
On March 6, 2023, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced “the expansion of premium processing for certain F-1 students seeking Optional Practical Training (OPT) and F-1 students seeking science,...more
Employers who recently hired F-1 foreign students and wish to continue to employ them beyond the one or three years of Optional Practical Training employment authorization should contact immigration counsel and start making a...more
On April 30, 2022, Freeman Law posted my blog that provided a brief overview of international students in the U.S. pursuant to an F-1 visa and the limited circumstances under which those visa-holders may work in the U.S. See...more
An accounting firm hires a new graduate with a Bachelor of Science in Accounting degree from a local university for its audit team. This new graduate is a foreign student utilizing the one-year Optional Practical Training...more
The Biden Administration has announced that it is undertaking efforts designed to attract and retain foreign students in the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics fields. These initiatives will of course benefit...more
In an effort to attract global talent to strengthen the economy, the Biden-Harris administration recently announced several immigration policy expansions geared towards students in Science, Technology, Engineering, and...more
On January 21, 2022, the White House released a fact sheet entitled “Biden-Harris Administration Actions to Attract STEM Talent and Strengthen our Economy and Competitiveness,” announcing several immigration-related policy...more
Effective January 21, 2022, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security updated and expanded the list of STEM fields of study falling within the regulatory definition of “STEM field.” The list, known as the “DHS Stem Designated...more
USCIS recently settled a class action lawsuit regarding lengthy delays in processing of Employment Authorization Document (EAD) applications for individuals in F-1 student status. The settlement is welcome news to F-1...more
Many F-1 OPT foreign nationals have been approved for H-1B status effective October 1st in this year’s H-1B lottery Employers and F-1 workers should be careful during the transition from F-1 to H-1B status to ensure they...more
On April 12, 2021 U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that F-1 students seeking optional practical training (OPT) can now file Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization, online if they are...more